Anyone had to supplement with formula until their milk came in? Questions.

jac409 · January 2013

So, my DD is now three days old and we have been exclusively breast feeding. They were a little concerned about her weight loss before we left the hospital because she was almost to 10%. We went to the pediatrician today and he recommended that we supplement with formula until my milk comes in. We really didn't want to have to do this because I do not want to sabotage breast feeding at all. But, my baby's health is obviously the most important thing.

Anyone else had to do this yet and how has it worked for you? Any issues? How much do you supplement and how often? Every feeding? Thanks!

SingleMom31 · January 2013

I posted a few days ago about this and there were some good answers.

We're all over in what we're doing right now. The LC said to breastfeed, pump, and supplement after that if she's still hungry, which is about half the time. Sometimes just breast feeding and the expressed milk is enough to fill her up.

That said, this is HARD. It's easy to say to pump every time you feed, etc., but I also have a baby that isn't sleeping unless she's being held and my SO went back to work yesterday, so I'm on my own. Short of having 4 hands, I can't do it all. I have another appt with the LC on Sat, so maybe more help will help...

Good luck... You're def not alone.

blansaw · January 2013

I know one way to add to your supply is to eat fatty foods like milk, cottage cheese, and peanut butter. This should give your supply a little more substance for LO and may help with the weight gain.

chavatziporah · January 2013

Fenugreek is also supposed to help with milk supply. Try pumping to see if you are able to get more milk to feed LO.

LGalipp19 · January 2013

I second the Fenugreek. I understand doctors get concerned about their weight and want to supplement but at least for us it really set us back with breastfeeding. DD would get so full from formula and used to the ease of the bottles that she didn't want to work at the breast. If they would have given us another day or so she probably would've stimulated the nipples enough to make the milk come in. I ended up just making the decision after supplementing for a few days to stop the formula cold turkey to give her a chance at the breast and sure enough she figured it out. Fenugreek and tons of water though! That really helped!

JessAnnJ · January 2013

My nipples were in such bad shape prior to leaving the hospital and my daughter was fussy because she was hungry so the lactation consultant sent me home with a pump and instructions to supplement with formula and pump while my nipples healed and my milk came in. My nipples never seemed to feel better and I was struggling with the pain from the tears I experienced during th delivery lso I just kept pumping until I could see a lactation consultant again. We went yesterday and while it would be better for me to breast feed at each feeding my nipples are still in a lot of pain and feeding her two hours later just seemed impossible. So right now I am in day two of breast feeding first at every other feeding and then pumping at the other feedings. She gets breast milk first and then formula until she is full. I wish we were doing better but I'm trying to stick with something I think will work long term. One thing I will say is that she was a much happier baby when we added the formula. We thought she was a fussy baby but apparently she was just a hungry baby. She now sleeps well in her pack and play and she really only cries when she is hungry or needs to be changed.

jac409 · January 2013

Thanks all! I will definitely try the fenugreek and the pump. I do have one, but hadn't really thought to use it yet since I still just have colostrum and no actual milk. I will try it tonight though.

Litgirl77 · January 2013

I didn't have anything for days and our LO lost 11% of his birth weight. We got very scared in the hospital after he went 36 hours without a wet diaper, and increasing jaundice. We decided we had to supplement. My milk has come in now, and I'm working on increasing my supply with many of the things mentioned in pp. But the peace of mind I have knowing that he's gaining weight now overrides my desire to EBF. We'll get there eventually, but for now, this is what we're doing.

Good luck to you and your family. Hope things improve soon!

lawjjg522 · January 2013

We did, my milk started coming in at day 3 but wasnt really all there.. She did just fine adjusting to bottle and back to boob. and we actually had to do it our first night home before i had my milk so she was only 2 days old. She'll be fine. Formula wont hurt or sabotage the breast feeding. If anything the first feeding was a little rough after the bottle but then it was okay the rest of the day. We only did it at night, when she was super cranky- wanting to eat every 45min- hour. We did 1 oz at a time. We've had to do it a handful of times since we've been home and i find that 1.5-2 oz is typically enough. Formula is more filling then breast milk so they wont need as much.

genaca · January 2013

What worked for us was just to offer the breast and than when he pulled off after a few sucks of hardly nothing and started screaming again I gave him 1/2 oz of formula and than offered each breast again and another thing we did was put some sugar water on my nipple to get him to nurse more. I'm no expert but this is what worked for us! He is 4 weeks old today and hasn't had formula since my milk came in day 4 and he's went from 6lb10oz to 9lb! Good luck !

MrsJRD23 · January 2013

We were told we would have to supplement as well because LO lost so much weight. He was 8 lb 10 oz at birth and the day after d/c from the hospital at the LC he was 7 lb 9 oz. He was getting plenty of wet diapers though and I stuck to my guns and just kept nursing, like ALL the time. Nothing stimulates milk production better than the baby at the breast. He gained 7 ounces in the next 3 days after that. We never had to supplement with formula. If she is getting the right amount of wet/poopy diapers, you are fine. If sheis not, then supplementing may be needed.

MrsJRD23 · January 2013

Also, this article is great to help with how to properly use bottles while still encouraging the ability to return to the breast rather than just prefer the ease of the bottle. This is how we are introducing bottles to LO.

https://www.bfar.org/bottlefeeding.pdf

sorry I don't know how to make it clicky.

mlangs · January 2013

It took 7 days for my milk to come in... During that time I used an SNS... Ask about it.

amandax1013 · January 2013

We had to start supplementing, in the hospital because LO's weight drooped too much. At first we were using an SNS system which was great because he was still breast feeding, but when his weight kept dropping, we had to switch to bottles. Now I'm trying to get back to breast feeding, but it's been difficult. Ive been pumping to keep up my milk supply. I found lots of good tips about transitioning back to breast feeding on kellymom.com. Tomorrow I'm gonna let my husband take care of everything else so the baby and I can spend the day working on breast feeding. Fingers crossed that it works!

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